1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a sliding panel system with at least one sliding panel that is guided on at least one slide rail and may be located between two lateral peripheral boundaries, the sliding panel elements of which panel system, when the sliding panel is closed, or when the sliding panels are closed, may be aligned in a row next to one another, and in the parked position may run orthogonally or mutually perpendicular to the slide rail, whereby associated with each sliding panel element there may be two guide elements that are located at some distance from each other in the sliding direction, are guided in at least one slide rail, and are preferably realized in the form of trucks or rollers, and there may be an additional curved or angled rail segment that is connected to the guide rail, in the transition area to the parked position.
2. Background Information
Some sliding panel elements are frequently realized in the form of glass panel facades and are conventionally suspended from a ceiling rail that is located in the vicinity of the crossbar or of the ceiling, whereby, however, the slide rail can also be a floor rail. The individual sliding panel elements, which in the closed position are located aligned in a row next to one another, must be moved into a parking or stowage position when the sliding panel is opened, for which purpose the individual panel elements, which are normally moved by motor power, although they can also be moved manually, are separated in the vicinity of their adjacent connecting edges and are moved into the parked position. The location and configuration of the parked position depends on the space available in the specific application. The movement of the sliding panel elements into the parked position can be done relatively easily if the individual sliding panel elements can be moved laterally in the parking area so that they are practically perpendicular or at right angles to the opening or closing direction, i.e., at a right angle to the longitudinal direction of the rail, as described in European Patent No. EP 0 437 029 A1. In that publication, with reference to the final sliding panel element in the closing direction, a relatively simple connection to a wall that runs orthogonally to the rail, for example, is possible. In the transition area to the parked position, there is a rail segment that branches off from the rail with the interposition of a switch, so that when the sliding panel is opened, the respective leading guide element continues to follow the curve of the rail, while the respective trailing guide element of a moving panel element is deflected by means of a switch into the branching rail segment. It is apparent that when the moving panel elements are moved into the parked position described in European Patent Application No. EP 0 437 029 A1, the free passage area of the sliding panel on an open moving wall is restricted.
If--as described in German Patent Publication No. DE 40 15 870 A1--the parking area is located in a recess, the side walls of which run parallel to and are aligned with the longitudinal direction of the slide rail, a relatively good connection is possible between the last sliding panel element in the closing direction and the adjacent wall of the recess. However, this arrangement requires the existence or addition of a parking recess.
However, in sliding panel systems described in some publications, there are special problems with regard to the achievement of a tight connection of the final sliding panel element in the closing direction, if the connection must be made with a wall that runs orthogonally to the slide rail and the wall that borders the slide rail, and if, in the parked position, the individual sliding panel elements are also supposed to be in a position that runs essentially orthogonally or at an angle to the slide rail, without restricting the free passage width of the sliding panel. For this purpose, a curved or angled rail segment that branches off from the rail is necessary for the pivoting movement of the individual sliding panel elements by approximately 90 degrees or more from the aligned position when the sliding panel is closed into the parked position, in which curved or angled rail segment the individual sliding panel elements are guided with both trucks so that they can execute the pivoting movement by approximately 90 degrees.
One particular problem with this arrangement is the realization of the transition to the parked position so that on one hand, the pivoting movement can be reliably executed, and on the other hand so that there is a connection between the first sliding panel element in the opening direction and the adjacent wall.
On the curved guides described in some publications, that is, the curved or angled rail segments that branch off from the rail, it was not possible to bring the free closing edge of the first sliding panel element in the opening direction up to the wall to which it was to be connected, which meant that it was necessary to have an additional intermediate element at this point, e.g. in the form of a pivot-hung door or a shutter. This arrangement was found to have problems, on one hand on account of the extra effort and expense it entailed, and on the other hand, when the sliding panel is open, such intermediate elements interfere with unrestricted access between the walls that are adjacent to the sliding panel itself on both sides.